This job (closed) is not a computer science job per se, in that there’s no technical stuff like programming involved. It’s to support the UK’s recently created AI Safety Institute – helping people to understand the risks as well as the benefits of AI.
The ad below mentions ‘red teaming’ (see more on that).
GOV UK Civil Service Jobs / Department for Science, Innovation & Technology
AI Safety Institute
Senior Policy Advisor, International Partnerships
https://www.civilservicejobs.service.gov.uk/csr/jobs.cgi?jcode=1891216
Job closed on 20 December 2023.
Location
About the job
Job summary
AI Safety Institute
Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) over the last decade have been impactful, rapid, and unpredictable. Today, harnessing AI is an opportunity that could be transformational for the UK and the rest of the world. Advanced AI systems have the potential to drive economic growth and productivity, boost health and well-being, improve public services, and increase security.
The UK government is determined to seize these opportunities. In September, we announced Isambard AI as the UK AI Research Resource, which will be one of Europe’s most powerful supercomputers purpose-built for AI. The National Health Service (NHS) is running trials to help clinicians identify breast cancer sooner by using AI. In the workplace, AI promises to free us from routine tasks, giving teachers more time to teach and police officers more time to tackle crime. There is a world of opportunity for the UK that we will explore.
But advanced AI systems also pose significant risks, as detailed in the government’s paper on Capabilities and Risks from Frontier AI published in October. AI can be misused – this could include using AI to generate disinformation, conduct sophisticated cyber-attacks or help develop chemical weapons. AI can cause societal harms – there have been examples of AI chatbots encouraging harmful actions, promoting skewed or radical views, and providing biased advice. AI generated content that is highly realistic but false could reduce public trust in information. Some experts are concerned that humanity could lose control of advanced systems, with potentially catastrophic and permanent consequences. We will only unlock the benefits of AI if we can manage these risks. At present, our ability to develop powerful systems outpaces our ability to make them safe. The first step is to better understand the capabilities and risks of these advanced AI systems. This will then inform our regulatory framework for AI, so we ensure AI is developed and deployed safely and responsibly.
The UK is taking a leading role in driving this conversation forward internationally. We launched the Frontier AI Taskforce – the first state body dedicated to the safety of advanced AI, investing more than any other nation – and hosted the world’s first major AI Safety Summit. Responsible government action in an area as new and fast-paced as advanced AI requires governments to develop their own sophisticated technical and socio-technical expertise.
The Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute (AISI) is the next step in this process. It will advance the world’s knowledge of AI safety by carefully examining, evaluating, and testing new types of AI, so that we understand what each new model is capable of. It will conduct fundamental research on how to keep people safe in the face of fast and unpredictable progress in AI. The Institute will make its work available to the world, enabling an effective global response to the opportunities and risks of advanced AI.
What we Value:
- Diverse Perspectives: We believe that a range of experiences and backgrounds is essential to our success. We welcome individuals from underrepresented groups to join us in this crucial mission.
- Collaborative Spirit: We thrive on teamwork and open collaboration, valuing every contribution, big or small.
- Innovation and Impact: We are dedicated to making a real-world difference in the field of frontier AI safety and capability, and we encourage innovative thinking and bold ideas.
This is a once-in-a-generation moment, and these roles will sit at the heart of the team. Joining the team represents a unique opportunity to deliver the vision for a constantly evolving area of UK policy. We are looking for applicants with an enthusiasm for supporting the Institute’s mission while embodying our values.
The risks arising from AI are inherently global in nature and action to address them requires international cooperation. World leaders and major AI companies expressed their support for the AI Safety Institute (AISI) at the AI Safety Summit. Already, the UK has agreed two partnerships: with the US AI Safety Institute, and with the Government of Singapore to collaborate on AI safety testing – two of the world’s biggest AI powers.
In this role you will work as part of a high functioning, friendly team to establish AISI as an international hub for AI Safety and AI Safety governance. This will embed the Institute at an international level, working with countries and industry, and ensure that AISI is the lynch pin in an international network of like-minded organisations. This will result in an internationalisation that delivers tangible benefits in terms of AI Safety research and evaluation.
Job description
You will have a leadership role within the AISI International Partnerships team and will oversee the design and implementation of initiatives to support the delivery of the internationalisation of the Institute and help build its International Partnerships.
Responsibilities:
- Raising the international footprint of the AISI. This would involve working with colleagues from across the Department, with FCDO, and others, to ensure that the AISI is directing the global debate on AI safety, as the eminent international AI Safety Institute. This will include identifying and delivering opportunities to showcase its capabilities, and influence policy making, including at major international fora (e.g. the Korea AI Safety Summit).
- Team leadership and relationship building. Here you would be managing a team and ensuring that they, and you, are building relationships across UK Government, with multilateral organisations and with the AISI’s partners to raise the saliency of AI safety and ensure that AISI’s engagement is helping deliver broader HM Government objectives.
- Leading the delivery of international partnerships for the Institute, building relationships with other countries helping them to develop their AI safety capacity and capabilities. This could involve research and collaboration with the AISI’s specialist Research Unit to identify how and where AISI can support and influence other countries ambitions.
- Set and implement the strategy for further international partnerships and collaboration for the Institute, working in collaboration with FCDO, wider DSIT colleagues and analysts to inform our international priorities and strategy.
- Lead the delivery of international meetings, engagement and events on behalf of AISI. This could include attendance at summits or international forums; running our own events to advance AISI missions (e.g. hosting events for the purposes of red teaming or information sharing with international stakeholders); and bilateral meetings.
Person specification
Essential criteria
- Expert leadership skills, strong organisational skills, with the ability to maintain a high quality of service in a fast-paced environment.
- Strategic skills – you are able to step back and ‘see the big picture’ in your work, which will be critical to ensure our activities are aligned with our strategic goals – and you have a genuine interest in geopolitics, AI safety and international AI governance.
- Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build rapport at all levels, maintaining productive working relationships
- A can do attitude, able to work effectively at pace, make decisions in the face of competing priorities, and remain calm and resilient under pressure.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills with the ability to provide confident, constructive challenge to Senior stakeholders.
- To have a proactive approach and a focus on continuous improvement of self and service, with an appetite to work with others to simplify processes and increase efficiency.
Behaviours
We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Leadership
- Delivering at Pace
- Seeing the Big Picture
- Working Together
Things you need to know
Selection process details
As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV and personal statement.
Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.
Please use your personal statement (in no more than 750 words) to give us examples of how your skills and experience match the essential criteria needed for this role. Consider giving an example for each bullet point, in the ‘Who you are’ section and use work you have completed to demonstrate how you meet each one.
Applications will be sifted on the CV and personal statement.
Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift, or progressed straight to assessment/interview.
The interview will be a blend of questions about Behaviours and Strengths needed for the role.
We highly recommend learning about Success Profiles and using the Situation, Task, Action, Result and Reflection (STARR) framework when structuring your answers. In your examples you should include evidence on ‘how’ you demonstrated the requirements and the impact of your work, as well as ‘what’ you did.
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